


Okay

by Angelicat2



Series: Mental Health and Disorders [2]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Amnesia, Angst with a Happy Ending, Cuddling & Snuggling, Dissociation, Dubious Science, Epilepsy, Flashbacks, Genetics, Hurt Keith (Voltron), Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Keith (Voltron) Needs a Hug, Literal Sleeping Together, Medication, Neurological Disorders, Past Child Abuse, Scared Keith (Voltron), Season/Series 02, Seizures, Self-Worth Issues, Worried Shiro (Voltron), concerned coran, kind of in a way, mostly true science but not completely
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-09
Updated: 2019-12-09
Packaged: 2021-02-26 06:27:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,775
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21729025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Angelicat2/pseuds/Angelicat2
Summary: Ever since his time with the Galra, Shiro's forgotten some personal info. He doesn't remember purple is his favorite color, what his ex used to eat for breakfast, that the tiny scar on his knee came before Kerberos, and other things. He hasn't forgotten anything about his best friend, Keith, though...Until he did. One very important medical detail...Keith has absence seizures and they're really bothering him now.
Relationships: Coran & Keith (Voltron), Coran & Shiro (Voltron), Hunk & Keith & Lance & Pidge | Katie Holt & Shiro, Keith & Shiro (Voltron), Keith/Shiro (Voltron)
Series: Mental Health and Disorders [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1556461
Comments: 17
Kudos: 344





	Okay

**Author's Note:**

> Dun Dun Duhhhhhhhhhhh!!! Anyway, I've been posting quite a bit lately but I never seem to work on my ongoing fics :/ sorry. New ideas just keep coming all the time! XD
> 
> Enjoy!

Shiro knew he was forgetting something. 

Ever since his capture at the hands of the Galra and his release by Ulaz, he had been forgetting things.

He had forgotten that his favorite color was violet, the shade space got at times...the color of Keith’s eyes when he was excited and pleased. He forgot what Adam used to eat for breakfast back before the mission, back when they were together. He forgets that he got that small scar on his left knee from accidentally hitting one of the sims instead of at the hands of his torturers. He forgets the lyrics of some dumb song that he has the melody to stuck in his head, one he sometimes hums without realizing until the others ask. He forgets the funny nicknames his grandpa used to call him when he was upset. He forgets an experiment Matt showed him. He forgets some of Sam’s wise insightful advice.

But those aren’t big details.

It’s not like he forgot his name. He knows he’s Takashi ‘Shiro’ Shirogane.

It’s not like he forgot that his best friend was by his side now. He’s known him for years, having met him as a high schooler. He remembers that Keith stole his car. He remembers that Keith had gotten into a fight with Cadet Griffin. That Shiro had promised to never give up on him. 

Damn...he feels like he gave up on him…

Out of all the things he could forget, he doesn’t remember this one important detail…

It comes to his attention when they are at breakfast one morning. They’re just doing what they normally do, eating some new type of dish Hunk made just moments ago. They all had to get up early, but the teen made it well worth it. The food they ate tasted heavenly, way better than food goo and a million steps above the prisoner food he was forced to eat for a year. It tasted almost like cinnamon rolls.

He’s into his third bite when Lance pulls his attention to Keith. Glancing over, he hears as the Cuban complains about Keith. Blinking, he watches as Lance scoffs.

“Mullet’s daydreaming a lot this morning,” he points his thumb at the other who scowls with irritation on his features, “Geez, there’s something up with him. Bet he’s dreaming of going back to bed.”

“That’s you,” Keith rolls his eyes before taking another bite of his meal. Shiro watches him for a moment, something edging at his brain. He feels like he should do something but he doesn’t know what...something is wrong, “We know you’d go back to bed in two seconds flat.”

“Hey,” Lance huffed before waving his hand at the slightly older, “I would not. I wanna train so I can beat your ass at the bot.”

“Heh…” Keith smirked before raising a brow, “Good luck at that.”

“Yeah, Lance,” Pidge rolled her eyes before pointing her fork at him, “Keith’s at level 18. You’re not beating that any time soon.”

“What!” Lance shouts in surprise, hopping up in shock before slamming his hands on the table, “Wait wait wait...I thought Keith was where we were. Geez, why didn’t you tell us, mullet?”

Keith didn’t respond as they all looked at him. For a moment, his gaze was over slightly to the left, dark orbs glazed. It only lasted a few seconds before he blinked, turning back to them and snorting.

“Because unlike a certain someone, I actually train,” the other smirked before taking another bite, letting out a small yawn before continuing, “I swear you try to get away with sleeping in and stuff all the time.”

“And miss picking on you?” Lance scoffed playfully before rolling his eyes, “Like I’d ever do that.”

“I don’t know, man,” Hunk squirmed in his seat, grinning, “I think I saw you oversleeping in your room yesterday.”

“Hey!” Lance threw his hands into the air, “Whose side are you on?”

“I’m just pointing it out,” the bigger teased back before taking a bite of his food, “Does this taste like cinnamon rolls to you guys? Because it’s been forever since I’ve had one. How do you guys like it? Is it bad? Is there too much cinnamon...or cinnamon-like stuff? I don’t know what to call it. Space cinnamon?”

“Quiznak,” Lance muttered before he took a big bite, eating with his mouth partially full, “It’s da besh fing I’sh eatshen in monshs.”

“Ewww,” Pidge scrunched up her face, “Don’t talk with your mouth full. Anyway, it’s really good, Hunk.”

“Thank you, Hunk,” Shiro nodded along before sending the younger a grin, sugary taste still on his tongue, “It’s delicious.”

“Awwww….thanks guys!” Hunk blushed softly before his face dropped into one of concern. Shiro raised a brow in confusion, “Keith?”

Shiro gazed over at his best friend. The younger man was sitting there with both hands on the table, a blank look on his face. His thumb was repetitively twitching against his fingers as his eyes wandered slightly again, looking all the bit like Lance had said, as if he were daydreaming. A second passed before the ebony-haired man blinked, looking at each of them before his brows moved down.

"What?"

"Uhhh…" The others all stared for a moment, which Keith bristled at. Luckily Shiro chose to speak up, "We're telling Hunk how good his cinnamon rolls are."

"Oh," Keith stared for a moment before smiling back, "They're great, big guy. Thanks."

"Awww, if Keith says they're great, I believe him," Hunk grinned back before he grabbed some of them, which Lance protested at.

"Whyyyyyyyy!!!"

"Because I want to save some for the other two and for later."

"But I'm hungry!"

"How can you be hungry?" Pidge rolled her eyes before typing something quickly on her computer, "You literally stuffed yourself with six of those things. I've only had two."

"You're just tiny and I'm a growing boy!" Lance shouted in mock annoyance, patting his belly, "I gotta eat."

They all expect a retort that never comes. They all gaze back at Keith who is staring again as if lost in his head. Something doesn't seem right about it as the younger's face stayed pretty flat for a moment that lasted longer than Shiro liked.

"You okay, Keith?" Pidge asked cautiously as the other suddenly blinks, coming back to them, "What's going on?"

"Huh?" The black-haired teen asks before shrugging slightly, rubbing his face, "I'm fine. Just...tired."

Shiro knows it's more than just that. Keith had that guilty look on his face like he knew what was up but wouldn't say. His eyes snuck over to Shiro before staying there for a moment. Shiro blinks in confusion since the look the younger levels his way makes it seem like...he is supposed to know something he doesn't. When he shows his confusion, Keith looks away with saddened eyes. Shiro doesn't get it.

"I'm just...need more sleep," Keith muttered after a moment, staring at his hands for a second before pushing his half-full plate away and standing, "It was good, Hunk. I'm just not hungry anymore...okay?"

Shiro's heart broke at the way Keith stated it. He said it like he was scared that Hunk would say that it wasn't fine. Like he was asking _permission_ to not eat the rest. 

"Yeah, it's fine, man," Hunk spoke softly before he stepped forward, "I...do you...want a...ummm…"

"A what?" Keith asked cautiously before wincing slightly, pulling away, "I'm going to go train. See you guys there."

And then he left the room. They watched him go, feeling heavy and uncomfortable. Hunk turned back to them with a small frown, tears welling up in his eyes.

"I just wanted to offer a hug," the younger's brow moved down, "He looks like he could use one."

"I'll go check him," Shiro spoke up with a small distracted frown, "Thanks, Hunk. At least you were willing to help him out. Keith just...has a hard time with people. We'll be to training in an hour."

"Alright," the three agreed before he too left, marching to the training room. Once inside, he stared as the younger man sat off to the far wall, head resting on his knees, shoulders hunched.

"You okay?" Shiro asked worriedly before sitting down next to his best friend, "You seem...different."

"I…" Keith paused for a long moment before he frowned, "You don't remember, do you?"

He asks it with such a defeated air that Shiro knows he's already made up his mind. And sadly, Shiro thinks he must be right. He has no idea what Keith is referring to. 

"Will you tell me what's wrong?" 

"It's fine," Keith shrugged before he rubbed his face, "You don't have to worry."

"Keith," Shiro waited but the younger refused to look at him. A moment passed before he sighed softly, "You know I'm always here for you, right?"

"Yeah," Keith nods before sighing softly, "I know."

A moment of silence echoed around them before Shiro cheered up.

"Want to spar before the others get here?" He smirks before holding out his mechanical hand that he's never scared of now. Not when it comes to Keith, "I bet you can beat me at least once today."

"Only once," the younger scoffs before taking his hand, "Just you wait, Old Timer. I'll show you."

"I don't doubt you will," Shiro snickered before patting his shoulder with his left hand, "You're more talented than you give yourself credit for."

Keith merely stared at him with wide eyes before smiling softly, something so rare that Shiro wished he had a bottle to stick it in for later. Even a picture wouldn't do it justice.

Plus, Keith did show him. They got through seven rounds of which three were won by the younger. The last one dissolved into a playful wrestling game where Shiro had sat on top of Keith to pin him down but soon got flipped like he weighed nothing before Keith practically cuddled up to his chest, pressed his face into his neck like always. Shiro let him, enjoying himself as he hugged him back, getting a small sigh from the other. 

And then Keith seemed fine after that. 

Shiro should have known better. He should have listened to this nudging feeling. He really should have. 

Because whatever was wrong with Keith, came back with a vengeance months later. 

He first noticed it when the younger started acting...flat, emotionless. Keith would function like normal but he seemed...disconnected. His movements were slower, his face a little paler, his eyes a bit duller and less focused. He spoke less, smiled less, laughed almost never. He seemed to always be blinking for some reason and the signs were sending Shiro's brain into overdrive. This felt serious but...why?

And then he understood one of the days that they had been sparring with each other. The whole team was there and Lance was once again pointing out that Keith was being weird. The ebony-haired man didn't retort anything back, but instead just blinked some more. A moment passed before he blinked again, eyes suddenly looking more confused than before. He gazed around before looking at them and then the training room like he was wondering how they got here. When they got here.

Warning signs were blaring in Shiro's mind. A memory was on the tip of his vision, like a dam waiting to break.

"What's wrong?"

And then Shiro was somewhere else. 

…..

He was back at the Garrison, ebony hair in the corner of his eye as he sat in a chair in his office. One of Keith's teachers sat across the desk to his left, as Keith sat in front of him. He refused to look at the concerned glance Shiro was shooting at him.

"Cadet Kogane has not been paying attention in class," the woman raised a brow before she nodded her head towards the other, "And while he has not been getting the best grades, he has been doing fine until this daydreaming began."

"What do you mean?" Shiro questioned as he looked at Keith who still didn't move, eyes down on his joined hands in shame, "Everyone daydreams. There's nothing wrong with that."

"There is when your student drops a whole letter," the teacher scoffed before sighing, "He was pulling Bs, but now...He's beginning to dip down into Ds. Any lower and he will fail. And this class is not the only one he's having this issue in."

"Is that true, Keith?" Shiro asked softly, knowing the younger needed to get his side out, "What's wrong?"

"I don't know," Keith shrugged before staring at his desk with a resigned look, "I just...forget some of the information lately."

"Oh, cadet Kogane forgets," the woman huffed before shaking her head, "More like he doesn't pay attention."

Something was off. Keith was usually a very observant person. He always took in information around him. He had been the first to notice the ridiculous drawing up by one of Shiro's photos, one the Japanese man made himself and utterly failed at. He had also been the one to recite the exact numbers Shiro had on all his top scores and also things he learned in class when they talked. Keith did not sound like what his teacher was saying. 

"There must be some mistake."

"There is no mistake," she sighed tiredly, "Tell Lieutenant Shirogane what you remember from our last class."

Keith said nothing, only looked down.

"Well, there's your answer."

"I didn't mean to!" Keith suddenly spoke with wide eyes, "I was paying attention! I just...maybe I'm tired."

"Over half of the students here are tired, cadet," the woman frowned, "That's no excuse."

"I know but I-" Keith started to protest before he went quiet. Shiro watched as the younger gazed to the left slightly, eyes slightly dazed.

"See," she frowned as it went on, "He's been daydreaming like this all day."

Shiro could tell it was more than that. No one daydreamed in the middle of sentences. And the other's limbs were twitching slightly, as if he had jitteriness in his veins.

"Keith?" Shiro asked worriedly, only to get no response from the other who only kept staring. Another five seconds went by before his eyes brightened, returning to normal as he stilled.

"I've just been forgetting stuff and I don't know why," he went on before frowning, seeing them staring at him, one with disappointment and one with concern, "I'm sorry I don't remember any of today's lesson. I'm just...I don't know...I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

Shiro frowns. Keith shouldn't be sorry for this. It was out of his control. Shiro knows daydreams can be stopped. You can call someone out of a daydream. Whatever was wrong with Keith...it wasn't because of a lack of control and attention. Something else was going on. Something probably medical. 

"Thank you, Professor," Shiro smiled at her before grabbing a paper and writing something down, "I'll look more into this and I'll need to hold cadet Kogane for a bit. Is that all you wished to meet for?"

The woman sent him a look before exiting the room. Keith only sat there with jaded eyes and a sadness Shiro didn't like.

"Let's go down to the nurse, okay?"

"Why?" Keith wheezed as he stared forward, "It's just me not paying attention in class. The nurse can't help with that unless it's ADHD or something, right? I don't have that."

"I know," Shiro nodded before he moved to stand by the other, placing his hand to his shoulder, "But I think something else is going on. I want to help you, Keith."

"Still not giving up on me, huh, Old Timer?" Keith teased with rolled eyes before smiling, "Okay. We'll go but if nothing shows up, you owe me some food and a hoverbike race."

"Sounds reasonable," Shiro shrugged before grinning, "Maybe we can watch the stars too."

"It's a weeknight," Keith snickered as he stood up, "Can't we get in trouble?"

"Not if we seem innocent enough," Shiro reassured him as he raised a brow, "We could have just...fallen asleep before night fall without meaning to."

"Sure, Shiro," Keith smirked, "Sure."

And then they went to the nurse who examined him. At first, he said it was nothing but paused when Keith had another "daydreaming" attack at the end of the exam. Frowning, he brought in someone else who did a scan of the activity in Keith's brain. 

"It appears he has been having seizures," the woman watched the screen as she showed one with little patterns on it versus one with lots of scribbles, "The one with less is his function when he's acting normal. The more marked one is a sharp increase in activity in both sides of his hemispheres. That's the sign of a seizure."

"But he hasn't been showing signs of a seizure," Shiro frowned as he glanced over at the other who was sitting curled up in a chair behind a glass wall, "He didn't go into any convulsions or anything."

"Some people don't," the woman explained before looking over the charts again, "Cadet Kogane has what we call absence seizures. These are non-convulsive seizures that last for three to twenty seconds. They're so short most miss them."

"What happens with them?" Shiro needed to know, "Are they dangerous? Can..."

His heart beat faster. Seizures usually meant the person couldn't drive anything. Flying a plane was under the same restrictions. And Shiro knew how much it hurts to be denied your dream based on health problems beyond your control. He clenched his right fist, feeling his electro-band. His muscles spasmed briefly, reminding him that he currently also had an illness and that he had yet to tell Keith about it.

"Can he still fly?"

"With his seizures, his brain fires too much at once. Essentially, his brain's activity overpowers his other senses and disconnects from his body and it's voluntary functions for a few moments. He most likely doesn't remember anything when they happen and doesn't notice them. It's like if you were listening to me and sometimes the conversation skips and gets choppy," she glanced at Keith for a moment, face showing empathy and not sympathy. Shiro knew those doctors who did that and this woman clearly wasn't one of those. Thank goodness, "It's easy to assume he's daydreaming. And from what you're describing...Absence seizures aren't dangerous in of themselves. They don't cause lasting damage but if they go untreated, they can get worse. He's likely been having hundreds per day if he's having trouble gaining recent information and activities."

She glanced at the scans again. 

"He will be able to fly still, as long as we get him on some anticonvulsants and make sure they prevent the seizures," she smiled before her face turned grim, "But I'll warn you now. Even with meds, his seizures could get worse. It's rare, but sometimes absence seizures lengthen themselves to hours or days even. You won't notice that they are happening, especially if you don't know what to expect. We'll need to keep an eye on him, but most teenagers grow out of them without any trouble when they hit eighteen."

"Alright," Shiro nodded, trying to wrap his head around the information. Keith was currently sixteen, his birthday having past less than two months ago, "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Make sure he gets a good sleep schedule," Shiro listened as he watched Keith off on the other side of the room. He could see him having another one, eyes wandering slightly as his arm twitched slightly. It lasted for shorter than the rest he's seen so far, "Sleep has been found to lessen the seizures along with less stress. Exercise and meditation will help too. If you see him go into one, make sure no one pokes or shoves him, as he might freeze in whatever he's doing and then go back to it once it ends. Also, timing the seizure would be a good plan, since it's a concern if they go longer than thirty seconds or if they happen repeatedly without a break in between. I'll grab some sample meds for him to try. Make sure he takes one daily for the next two weeks and we'll see from there."

"Thank you."

…..

Blinking, Shiro come out of the flashback. Looking around, he saw that the team was around him, concerned about him. His eyes skated over them all in his haste to find Keith. The younger was further away from the circle, seemingly stuck between coming closer or moving away. Every few seconds, he gazed around at something before sending a frightened look his way.

Shiro walked past the others trying to ask if he had another flashback. Trying not to run straight to Keith's side, he slid up in front of the other before resting his hand on his shoulder.

"You okay, Keith?"

"I...I don't know," Keith shrugged before leaning forward a bit, "I…when did we come here?"

"What is the last thing you remember?" Shiro asked as he rested his flesh hand to the younger's cheek.

"We were at breakfast? I think we had some food goo?" Keith tilted his head slightly, glancing around again before staring at him with a lost expression. Shiro tried to hold back his own because the last time they ate food goo was four days ago. That was a long time to have a seizure, "How did we get here? How long has it been? What's wrong with me?"

"Hey, hey," Shiro frowned at his friend's panic before rubbing away tears that were starting to gather and fall, brushing them away ever-so-softly, "There's nothing wrong with you. It's just your body, Keith. Keith...have…"

He paused before looking the other over. Keith's eyes were clearer than they had been in days, skin a little more peachy. He seemed pretty normal now, if not confused and frustrated. There probably wasn't any brain damage. Hopefully.

"Have you been taking your meds?" The younger's eyes widened in shock, more tears welling forth as he gaped, "I remember now, Keith. I remember. I'm so sorry I forgot. I didn't mean to. You've been off your meds all this time, haven't you?"

"I...what...I," Keith blinked at him before nodding hesitantly, "Yeah. Couldn't afford them after I got...kicked out...and I thought they were gone when we came here. But...they probably just started back from the bottom again so we didn’t notice at all.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Shiro frowned softly before he brushed his thumb over the other’s cheek again, “If not, you could have told Coran. I’m sure he has some type of medicine for this.”

“I didn’t say anything…” Keith paused for a second, looking around before finally slumping slightly and sighing, “I didn’t tell anyone because what if they thought I was making it up? I mean, Lance keeps saying I’m daydreaming just like everyone has said and I couldn’t convince anyone before at the Garrison that it was more than that so...I didn’t even try once we got to space...And you didn’t remember it, so I wasn’t gonna say and it’s not really important anyway because we’re in the middle of a war-”

“Keith,” Shiro stopped him by pulling him close, making sure to rest the younger’s chin against his neck like normal, “It is important. You’re important, Keith. I don’t care if I forgot, this is your health we’re talking about. It’s the middle of war, but you can still take care of yourself.”

Keith quivered against him as he wrapped his arms around him carefully.

“What if…” Shiro swallowed thickly before breathing in the scent of Keith’s hair, a mix of desert and burning wood, “What if you have a seizure in the middle of battle?”

“Red wil-”

“I’m not talking about in your lion,” Shiro frowned softly before pressing his hands to Keith’s face, moving his head back just enough to look the younger in the eye, “What if you have a seizure in the middle of a fight with a Galra soldier? They won’t stop just because you do, Keith. We both know your seizures are short, but...a second can be the difference between life and death.”

And Shiro knew that better than anyone from his time in the rings. Matches could be overturned in milliseconds unexpectedly.

“I don’t want to lose you,” Shiro confessed softly as he gazed into galaxy eyes, “You’re my best friend...and I care about you.”

“I know,” Keith’s eyes softened as he stood there.

“Do you?” Shiro whispers quietly, brows moving down in concern, “I just...I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you, Keith. You know what kept me alive in the arena?”

“What?” Keith asks with worried eyes, gazing up at him and searching his face.

“You.”

“What?” Keith coughs weakly before tilting his head, “What?”

“You did,” Shiro nodded carefully, once again brushing his thumbs against smooth cheekbones, “I stayed alive so I could get back to you. You always take care of me, Keith. So...let me take care of you. Please.”

“I…” Keith stared for a long moment, so long that Shiro worried that he might have been having another seizure when the other suddenly relaxed, nodding at him, “Okay. Okay. I’ll...uh...We can go to Coran.”

“We don’t have to at this second,” he reassured the other before resting his hand over the other’s neck, rubbing at the joint between his shoulder and throat, “But it’d be better sooner than later. You had a seizure for four days, Keith.”

“Great,” Keith muttered under his breath before blinking, “Oh, no wonder I can’t remember half of the fight I had with the Blades.”

“Keith!” Shiro huffed before shaking his head, “Why didn’t you tell me that?”

“I thought I took too many hits to the face and that it was just exaustion,” Keith stared at him apologetically, “Heh...whoops…”

“Let’s just get you to Coran,” the older rolled his eyes, pushing Keith playfully which he laughed at, “He’ll have something for you.”

“Okay,” Keith snickered again before pressing his hand to the older’s, “Let’s go.”

So they did. It took them about half an hour, but they finally ran across the older Altean as he scrubbed something off of some type of equipment Shiro didn’t understand. The older shot them a surprised look before his face settled into a grin.

“Hello there, Number One and Four!” He looked at them before his eyes moved down slightly and back up. Shiro wondered what he was looking at, but then he noticed that Keith’s hand was still in his. His cheeks burned hotly as the Altean smirked, “What can I do for you today?”

“Keith needs some medicine,” Shiro glanced at the other who nodded along, “And we thought you could help us.”

“I most certainly can,” the man agreed as he swiped at the device one last time before putting the washcloth away, “What seems to be the problem? Stomach aches, headaches, fever, leg cramps, the slipperies coming on?”

“Uhhh….” Keith blinked as Shiro raised his brow, “No? I’m not Altean?”

“Oh, I forget sometimes,” the man laughed before waving it off, “Silly me. Got so much rushing through this noggin of mine. So what is wrong?"

"Do you have a treatment for seizures?" Shiro asked, watching as the other's face grew concerned quickly.

"Seizures are very serious," the older man looked between them. Shiro could feel Keith's fist shaking in his, so he squeezed it back reassuringly, rubbing his thumb over the other's palm, "I'm assuming seizures are the same thing in earthlings and us Alteans."

"Well...what about epilepsy?"

"Ah, yes," Coran nodded, twirling his moustache, "When one has more than one seizure. It’s a disorder that some Alteans suffer from. Which one of you has it?”

Shiro glanced at Keith whose shoulders scrunched up in fear. Shiro only clenched Keith’s hand a little tighter.

“Ahhh...That’s quite alright, Number Four,” Coran gently patted his shoulder before leading them to the infirmary, “What type of seizures have you been having problems with?”

“What type?” Keith tilted his head in confusion, “There’s only a few?”

“No, no, my dear boy,” Coran raised his brow before messing with the pod in front of him, “There are at least a dozen types of seizures. Many of them occur with epilepsy, but not all of them. Some are caused by genetics and others diseases and injuries. If I am going to treat them, I need to know what you have. It’s alright to tell me, I’ll keep it confidential from the others...except for Number One apparently. No surprise there.”

“I’ve had them since about four years ago,” Keith spoke up slowly before sitting on the bed before Coran who messed with some type of scanner that was pointed at the younger’s head, “I don’t think it was from any head trauma, but I...I don’t know. It could be. Had some...injuries growing up.”

Shiro could see the frown on Coran’s face at the statement. The older was much more knowing than he let out most of the time. He understood well what those injuries were and what they meant. Shiro didn’t doubt that for all of Allura’s praise, there must have been some abusive Alteans out there. Child abuse must have been a thing, if Coran’s sad eyes were anything to go by. And Shiro knew just what Keith had been through at the hands of people who were meant to care for him. Keith’s seizures had never knocked him out, but other _people_ had.

Thank the stars that Coran moved on from it instead of asking.

“I’m going to do a scan of your brain waves,” the older leaned over, messing with the screen a bit, “It won’t hurt, I promise. I’m going to look at your waves for the last eighteen phoebs. We’ll understand what’s the problem.”

“You can do that?” Shiro stared at the screen with wide eyes as it popped up with charts and scans that he couldn’t dare to understand, “Woah.”

“Why are you-” The man blinked before he tapped his own head, “Primitive earthling knowledge! Altean technology is by far much more advanced than I had thought. Our scanners can see what you call years back if we choose it to, my boys. I merely set it to when I understand Number Four to have been on his own, correct? We can gain a lot of information from this one scan.”

Shiro sent Keith a curious glance. If Keith was uncomfortable with it, he would call it off. The younger only shrugged before smiling softly at him.

“Okay,” Shiro agreed before sitting by Keith, making sure to press his knee next to the other to remind him that he was there, “What do we do?”

“Just whatever you wish to,” the man huffed softly before changing something, “It will take at least ten doboshes to complete. Lots of brain waves to see here!”

“Okay,” Shiro gently pushed Keith to lean against his shoulder, “Hey, Keith. Remember that food fight we had at the Garrison?”

“The one where someone was talking bad about you?” Keith scoffed quietly before rolling his eyes, “Of course.”

“He couldn’t get that mac-n-cheese out of his hair and stormed off after it was all done,” Shiro snickered before rubbing his face, “And don’t think I didn’t see you sneak in the first toss that made the fight break out.”

“Ahhh…” Coran grinned at them, trying to hold back laughter, “It must be Number Four’s specialty to start those food fights, if I recall correctly on your first training day.”

“Hey!” Keith squeaked as he sent them both a mock glare that was more playful than anything, “Allura started that one. I was done being cuffed and forced to be fed by Pidge and _Lance_. I would have had to lick his fingers off by the time it was done and that’s just disgusting because have you watched where the guy places his hands when we trai-”

And then Keith fell silent, both hands limply falling to his lap. Shiro winced, knowing it was another seizure. Glancing over proved him correct when the younger’s gaze moved up the left slightly like normal, clearly unseeing as his thumb rattled in Shiro’s hold slightly.

“Number Four?” Coran gazed at both of them, likely seeing Keith’s blank face and Shiro’s grimace, “What is going on, Shiro?”

“What normally happens,” Shiro spoke softly before counting in his head at seven seconds so far, “Seizure.”

“His scan is showing high electrical activity,” the Altean rubbed his moustache for a second before flipping the chart to something else, “Mmmmhhhmmmm…”

“Train?” Keith suddenly picked up speaking before huffing, “I’m not risking it.”

“Fair enough, Number Four,” Coran grinned before looking at something again, “I must agree with you. Your seizures do seem to be somewhat genetic in nature.”

“How so?” Shiro stared at the screen, “No one knows if Keith’s mom had something like that.”

“I’m sure neither of Keith’s parents had it,” he pulled up two scans of two brains and their activity, “But Number Four is not fully one or the other, Galra or earthling. While the Galra are much like us in body, their brains function at a much higher and faster electrical output. While you earthlings and we Alteans’ brains run at about 200 times per tick, the average Galra brain goes at nearly 300.”

“And Keith’s is trying to run at that frequency,” Shiro blinked before watching the screen mash into one, the impulses trying to fire but utterly failing and overloading the whole brain, “But his cells can’t handle that.”

“Exactly, my boy,” Coran nodded before raising a brow, “I have never seen this in someone of mixed heritage. There were many half-Galra before the war, and none seemed to have this problem. But we'll persevere and get you help. For now, we can try some dazapolizine. You'll have to watch him, Number One. And let me know if any side effects happen, Number Four."

"Okay," Shiro nodded before pausing, "Will that help Keith's...recent seizure pattern?"

"Recent seizure pattern?" The man frowned and looked at the screen as it beeped, "Oh, this may happen sometimes. It is very rare but...there seems to be no damage. What did you experience, Number Four?"

"I don't know," Keith shrugged before pressing closer to Shiro's side, "The last few days are basically blank. I just skipped from breakfast to training."

"Oh that is not a good thing," the older Altean winced, "This got more complex. Hmmm…”

“What?”

“Maybe if you were to connect to your Galra side more when one is about to hit…it could mitigate the seizure and make it nonexistent...” The man stared at the charts a bit longer, “You’re not aware of when the seizures happen, correct?”

Keith only nodded.

“This is one slippery slope,” Coran gazed at them both before his gaze went back to the screen, “Keith, I need you to breathe really fast for me and remember one of the most intense memories that made you angry or frightened.”

“Wait, what? Why?” Keith started but the Altean shushed him before pushing a chair up next to them.

“Not the time for questions, just do it.”

Shiro swapped glances with Keith who blinked. Shiro gazed back at the Altean who was...completely serious. A moment past before Keith’s breathing picked up. Shiro didn’t understand where Coran was going with this. He was making Keith hyperventilate...on purpose? Keith closed his eyes, wincing and likely remembering him getting news of his father’s death or...one of the times a foster parent went too far.

For a whole minute, nothing happened other than Keith’s breathing being way too fast and his face turning a bit off-colored. Shiro was about to call it off when Coran shouted loudly, making him jump in shock.

“OH NO!” The man screamed out with flailing arms, “SHIRO’S BEEN ATTACKED! HE’S DYING! THERE’S BLOOD FLYING EVERYWHERE!”

Shiro almost smacked the man himself for pulling such an act. Cursing in this head, he stopped when he saw Keith snap his head upright, eyes flying open…

They were glowing golden. Keith’s large orbs were shrunken slits as they looked around wildly. The younger’s mouth was open in a snarl, teeth sharp as knives. Shiro could feel claws digging into his undersuit, far tougher than normal. There was something animalistic in that look, but Shiro didn’t feel concerned...that much…yet...

“Hey, it’s okay,” Shiro pressed the younger to his chest, hugging him close as he peered over the smaller to see Coran nodding to himself, looking at a scan, “Shhhh...I’m okay. I’m fine. We’re safe.”

Keith didn’t say anything, only grabbed his back and settled down, pressing his face into Shiro’s neck.

“Coran…” Shiro sent the man a small glare which the older just chuckled at.

“Merely testing a theory,” he grinned before typing some things on the screen, letting out a sigh of relief when the screen lit up, “I was correct. Number Four can connect to his Galra side, if under direct stress and struck with intense feelings.”

“So what do we do about it?”

“Number Four just needs to come out of it,” Coran nodded as he searched through the nearest cabinet, “And with the information I got from his scans, I can give him the right medications. This should do it for today. Make sure he goes right to bed after this, since sleep can help.”

“Thanks, Coran,” Shiro nodded to him while holding Keith near.

“It’s no problem,” the older passed the small bottle of liquid to them before giving Keith a warm look, “Hope the boy feels better soon. Have a good night, you two.”

And then the man was gone. Shiro waited a moment before carefully ruffling Keith’s hair.

“You feeling better?”

“Yeah,” Keith nodded before breathing against his neck, “Tired though now.”

“That’s understandable,” Shiro agreed before grabbing the cup Coran left behind, filling it with light purple liquid and pressing it to the other’s lips, “Just take some medicine and we can get you to bed.”

“‘Kay,” Keith sipped at the drink before scrunching his nose, gagging at the taste. Shiro snickered under his breath until he accidentally smelled it and also coughed on his own spit. That smelled horrible, “Gross. Cor’an tryin’ to kill me.”

“No kidding,” Shiro groaned as he tipped the cup up all the way, emptying it into Keith’s mouth, “We’ll get it to taste better if it works. Now, bed time.”

“Shiro,” Keith whined softly before pressing to his chest more, snuggling up to him as Shiro rested his hands on the small of his back, “Too tired. Can’t walk.”

“You can’t walk now?” Shiro teased before he rubbed his hand through the back, longer curls of the younger’s hair, “Guess I can take you there.”

“Thanks,” Keith slumped into his neck, relaxing faster than Shiro had ever seen before. Either he was very tired or that medicine knocked him out. Either way, Shiro only chuckled fondly before pressing his hands to Keith’s legs, holding him up so he could stand. He grabbed the bottle before going down to Keith’s room. Once inside, he peeled the younger’s armor off, placing the younger into the bed, covering the blanket over him. Staring at the other for a moment, he brushed his thumb over the other’s cheek, watching as he nuzzled into the touch.

He must have been there for longer than he assumed because dark orbs were staring at him with a fond expression, gleaming slightly as Keith grinned. The lights were dimmer than before, but Shiro could still see.

“Nap together?” Keith asked sleepily with a tiny yawn. Shiro rolled his eyes, unable to deny this one person anything as small as a shared bed.

“Okay,” he agreed before stripping out of his armor and climbing in with the other who sighed happily, resting on his chest. Shiro laughed softly at him before pulling the blanket up and resting his hand to the other’s back, “Good night, Keith.”

“Night, Sh’ro,” Keith mumbled before passing out, breath evening out. Shiro listened to him for a few minutes before sliding into sleep himself, enjoying the warmth that was his best friend. Keith’s epilepsy was an issue, but for now they were okay.


End file.
